This is the latest book I have read of several by this wonderful author whose writing is always full of intrigue. The story is set in Cyprus at the time of the war with Turkey in 1974 and features forbidden love which is lost but found again many years later. This in itself lures you into the book but, then there are the chapters told by a fig tree which has been rescued from Cyprus and buried in a London garden to preserve it. I was really pleased to see the actress Ruth Jones raving about this book on the BBC2 programme Between The Covers. She also said she found the twist at the end amazing which I did and hope any other readers will too. A real gem of a book – thank you Elif.

A Fabulous take on this shocking episode in Scottish history. I had a vague picture of the event but Mina’s wonderful ability to tell a tale brought it all to life. I was there in those creepy, dank, dark corridors of Holyrood Palace trying to keep away from a company of mad men egged on by each other to put an end to the Queen’s favourite. Thank you Denise – I love all your books and will cherish my signed copy of this engaging novella.

I loved this book as I found the relationship between the three brothers fascinating.Having been brought up an only child I loved the way each brother had an opinion of the others that differed quite completely! I would guess that often happens in real life just as we may have an opinion of an acquaintance that turns out to be far from the truth. Each of the three brothers were successful as well as failures during their lives and my opinion of them changed as I progressed through the book. At times I was pleased for them and at others either disgusted or angry at the things they did or others thought they had done. I have a lovely signed copy from the Bloody Scotland event – thank you Liz Nugent for a truly outstanding read!

This is another book I received to review for an award before it was published hence the time taken to put my review on here. I loved this book from the start as it was written from the point of the Cu-Sith  who is the grey dog or soul taker of Gaelic legends. If you hear the three howls of this shadowy creature it is said he is coming to get you very soon. I thought it was such an original and fascinating idea and discovered this is the third in a series of ‘psychosleuth’ about the murder victim’s family. I found the inclusion of the dead boy’s spirit intriguing  and disturbing at the same time. However, I felt that a glossary of the Gaelic words and phrases would have been useful. I have a wee bit of Gaelic so I understood most of it but, if you don’t know that ‘maha’ is just ‘then’ as in OK maha you could be a bit lost. The Highland community where the tale was set was true to life and reminded me of the communities in North Skye where I lived for many years. Acceptance is everything and tales abound! The ending where the father of the victim revealed all he had found in his pursuit of a cover up was fantastic. There were a few typos but, hopefully these will have been sorted before the final printing. 

I was sent this book to review for an award so have been unable to review it until now. I had read a couple of the Damian Seeker series but wasn’t up to date with it so had to do a little research into the period and the king, Charles II, who was in exile. There was an epilogue in the book but, I felt that this would have been better as a prologue for the readers that had not read the others in the series. A map would have been helpful as well although the descriptions of the Netherlands did bring the location to life. I really enjoyed the story as the twists and turns made it intriguing and exciting. The characters were well presented and you were never sure whether they were Royalists or followers of Oliver Cromwell who was on his deathbed at the time. The fact that Seeker had returned from his fake death so could be discovered at any moment added to the suspense throughout the book. Altogether a recommended read if you like historical fiction and I would really love to see these books as a series on TV.

The story here is based on the scientific premise that once the heart stops beating the brain actually stays alive for anything up to the longest time recorded so far which is ten minutes and thirty eight seconds! The book was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2019 and, sadly, I have seen some quite bad reviews about it. Some people seem to have enjoyed the first part and not the second but, I thoroughly enjoyed it all! It really isn’t as gruesome as the title may lead you to believe as it focuses on a murder victim’s last thoughts after she has been dumped in a rubbish bin in Istanbul. The victim is a prostitute known as Tequila Leila and, in her last thoughts, she tells the story of her childhood and how she ended up in the Street of Brothels. We also hear of the five best friends she meets along the way who come from a variety of genders and suffer some disabilities. In Istanbul there is a cemetery known as the Cemetery of the Companionless where anyone without a family to claim them is buried with no headstone just a number on a wooden post to mark their passing from the world. As Leila, whose birth name was Leyla, has no family that wish to admit even knowing her, this is where her body has been taken. The second part of the book relates the tale of how her friends, with the help of a well meaning mortuary assistant, find where she is in the cemetery and set about removing Leila to a better place. Some of their escapade is amusing and other parts heart wrenching all of which makes for a great read.